Hylochoerus meinertzhageni
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Summary
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Classification Schemes
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Images & External Links
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Bibliography
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Full Account
Taxonomy
Assessment Information
Geographic Range
Population
Habitat and Ecology
Threats
Conservation Actions
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Taxonomy
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| Kingdom |
Phylum |
Class |
Order |
Family |
| ANIMALIA |
CHORDATA |
MAMMALIA |
CETARTIODACTYLA |
SUIDAE |
| Scientific Name: |
Hylochoerus meinertzhageni |
| Species Authority: |
Thomas, 1904 |
Common Name/s:
| English |
– |
Forest Hog, Giant Forest Hog, Western Forest Hog |
| French |
– |
Hylochère |
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| Taxonomic Notes: |
Three subspecies are provisionally recognized, following Grubb (1993, 2005) and d'Huart and Kingdon (in press): H. m. ivoriensis, which occurs as isolated populations from Guinea to southern Ghana; H. m. rimator, which ranges from south-east Nigeria to eastern DR Congo; and the nominate H. m. meinertzhageni (the true Giant Forest Hog), which occurs as scattered populations from the Albertine Rift Highlands of eastern DR Congo to the Kenyan Rift Valley. |
Assessment Information
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| Red List Category & Criteria: |
Least Concern
ver 3.1
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| Year Assessed: |
2008 |
| Assessor/s: |
d'Huart, J.P. & Klingel, H. |
| Reviewer/s: |
Leus, K. ( Pig, Peccary & Hippo Red List Authority) & Hoffmann, M. (Global Mammal Assessment Team) |
Justification:
Listed as Least Concern as the species is relatively widespread, sometimes locally abundant with a high reproductive potential, and, although it is subject to hunting in many parts of its range, it is not believed to be declining at a rate that would merit it being listed in Near Threatened or a threatened category.
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| History: |
| 1996 |
– |
Lower Risk/least concern
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Geographic Range
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| Range Description: |
The Forest Hog has a range similar in many respects to the Bongo Tragelaphus eurycerus, being distributed in scattered populations throughout undisturbed tracts of lowland rainforest in West Africa and on the right bank of the Congo River, and also present in highland mixed forests of the Albertine Rift, and in isolated montane forests in Kenya and Ethiopia (d'Huart and Kingdon in press). The species is believed to be extinct in Equatorial Guinea (Rio Muni), and there have been no records of Forest Hog from Rwanda since the late 1980s (B. Dowsett pers. comm.), though they may possibly survive in Nyungwe Forest (d'Huart and Kingdon in press).
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| Countries: |
Native:
Cameroon; Central African Republic; Congo; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Côte d'Ivoire; Ethiopia; Gabon; Ghana; Guinea; Kenya; Liberia; Nigeria; Sierra Leone; Sudan; Uganda
Regionally extinct:
Equatorial Guinea (Equatorial Guinea (mainland))
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| Range Map: |
Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.
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Population
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| Population: |
Generally occurs at low density over most of its range, but may be locally abundant and sometimes occurs at high densities. d'Huart (1978) recorded densities of 0.4/km² in Garamba National Park to 2.6 /km² in the central plain of Virunga National Park. On the Mweya Peninsula, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda, density was reported as >10 km² in 1999. However, Klingel and Klingel (2004) subsequently recorded a 30% fall in the density mainly as a result of predation; this population had subsequently declined further and is now close to extinction (H. Klingel pers. comm. 2007).
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| Population Trend: |
Decreasing
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Habitat and Ecology
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| Habitat and Ecology: |
Throughout its range, the Forest Hog inhabits a wide variety of forest types, ranging from subalpine areas and bamboo groves through montane to lowland and swamp forests, galleries, wooded savannas and post-cultivation thickets. It shows a preference for a convenient and permanent water source, thick understorey cover in some parts of the home range, and a diversity of vegetation types (d'Huart and Kingdon in press).
Adult size and sexual maturity are reached by both males and females at 18 months; life tables suggest an average life expectancy of 3.5 years and an average life span of five years, with a maximum of 18 years (d’Huart 1978).
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| Systems: |
Terrestrial |
Threats
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| Major Threat(s): |
Forest Hogs are very vulnerable to deforestation and, to a lesser extent, to hunting for food. In some areas of the Congo Basin, Forest Hogs are avoided by shotgun hunters because their flesh is considered to have an unpleasant taste, but this is by no means a widespread aversion (d'Huart and Kingdon in press). Hogs are sometimes caught in snares and the meat is smoked to conceal its origin and sent to urban markets (R. Ruggiero, in d'Huart and Kingdon in press).
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Conservation Actions
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| Conservation Actions: |
Forest Hogs occur in a number of protected areas, including: Sapo N.P. (Liberia); Taï N.P. (Côte d’Ivoire); Bia N.P. (Ghana); Minkebe N.P. (Gabon); Odzala N.P. (Congo Republic); the Sangha Tri-National complex (CAR, Congo, Cameroon); Maiko N.P., Virunga N.P. and Kahuzi-Biega N.P. (DR Congo); Ruwenzori N.P. and Queen Elizabeth N.P. (Uganda); Aberdares N.P. and Mt Kenya N.P. (Kenya); and Bale Mountains N.P. (Ethiopia).
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